A five year study conducted by Dr Anna Thomson as part of the DiverseForages Project has produced some positive results for multispecies pastures. The aim of the the DiverseForages Project is "to achieve acceptable yields of good quality forage for livestock production whilst having a positive and long term impact on the environment."

Conclusions from the study:

Multispecies pastures...

• containing legumes with no N fertilisation, can be as productive as fertilised perennial ryegrass pastures.
• perform considerably better than perennial ryegrass pastures in years of drought.
• can support the same growth rate as perennial ryegrass whilst reducing methane output per kilo of feed consumed.
• retain their species richness and are less prone to weed ingress over time, than perennial ryegrass pastures.

Information from the study is below, referenced from the School of Agriculture, Policy and Development, University of Reading.

What are diverse forages?
There are many plants other than ryegrass that can be used for forage including legumes (e.g. clover) and herbs/forbs (e.g. chicory or plantain). Research has shown that grass pasture can be enhanced by the addition of legumes and herbs. Legumes capture atmospheric nitrogen as compounds that are used by the plant, replacing the need for nitrogen fertiliser, and some legume/herb species are deep rooting, improving soil structure and providing resilience to drought and flooding. In this way, mixed species work together to fulfil different ecosystem functions, potentially increasing forage yield of the whole pasture above the yield of any one species sown alone. 

Mix Components
Three forage mixtures comprising six, twelve or seventeen species were established and compared to fertilised perennial ryegrass at multiple research sites and farms running from 2016-20. The composition of the experimental seed mixtures is shown below.

 Hamish Stace - Kiwi Seed Agronomist